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Best Poems From
LAURENCE OVERMIRE
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341.
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Old Shoes
Old shoes
Broken-soled brothers
Have seen happier days
I remember when I bought them
My young hands pulled the laces tight
I looked smart in those shoes
Dancing with the girls on a hot summer night
Smoking cigarettes in the gloom
Waiting for a dream to slip into the back seat
Of a ’57 Chevy.
Ah, but
Old shoes
Don’t last long
And old feet grow tired
From all the walking.
There comes a time
When both must part
An ignominious end
In some forgotten field
Covered with pungent earth
Discarded debris.
(Previously published in Some Words: A Place For Poetry, Feb.2000)
Laurence Overmire
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342.
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Old Stones Never Die
Mr. Richards, your cigarette is hanging
Loose
From a tentative lip
Time’s uncool cats have scratched their claws across your face
Shocks of gray have teased your hair
Oh, devil-gods, don’t make us remember the dreams we dropped
Blow some smoke into our eyes
That’s it, Mick
We want to forget the hard years
Between
'When last we felt alive' and
Oh, not so long ago was it
We wanted to change the world, but the world goes on without us
Not even paying
Attention
And some new rebel has taken up the cry
Usurped the stage
Youth’s mad discordant riffs
Up and down a six-string of illusions.
Keep on rollin’, boys
Jump the jack flash and rock us back to sleep
‘Cause there ain’t never gonna be no
No no never gonna get no
Satisfaction.
(Previously published in Vol. No. Magazine, Winter '99, Vol. No.26)
Laurence Overmire
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343.
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Olympian Heights
The Olympic Games.
Two philosophies at odds:
The State vs. The Individual.
Which is more important?
To a few countries in this
New millennium
The former is yet predominant
Children taken from their homes
Subjected to the discipline and rigor of a
Forced excellence, the honor and glory
Of the State taking precedence over
The individual concern.
But in a democracy, like ours
The individual’s freedom is the foundation
Of national identity and pride.
In such a system, the individual must
Motivate and discipline himself
But few are willing to pay the price
Necessary to achieve
Greatness.
The cost can be considerable—
The loss of relationship, family and friend
Childhood slipping between the fingers
And even after all is said and done
Only a very few will win the elusive
Gold.
Yet without the sacrifice of a few
In any walk of life
An extreme commitment
To achieve a goal
There can never be
The shattering of an old record
Waiting to be—
Broken.
(Previously published in The Poet's Porch, Nov.2000)
Laurence Overmire
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344.
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Om
I am the meditation of my soul
In solemn words my heart believes
The mantra of my existence
My death and life but a circle
‘Round a sound, soft breath
Peace in the stillness
No time, no matter, no place.
(Previously published in Poetry Soul to Soul, Winter 2002)
Laurence Overmire
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